


Nobody Told Me It Would Be Lonely

by ineedmysickfix



Series: The Magnus Archives: Stardew Valley AU [2]
Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Farm/Ranch, He/Him and They/Them Pronouns for Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Librarian Jon, M/M, Martin is not immune to The Lonely even in a cute farming au, No Fear Entities (The Magnus Archives), Stardew Valley AU, canon compliant depictions of loneliness, farmer Martin, okay maybe a little spoopiness as a treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-28 02:33:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30132654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ineedmysickfix/pseuds/ineedmysickfix
Summary: Life on Solum Farm was going great for Martin. He's nearly done with all of clearing up the land, he's starting to plant some crops, and he's even been offered make a living on the farm.But a meeting with one Peter Lukas and a sudden lunch cancellation left Martin feeling, well, lonely. But maybe a certain librarian could help chase the fog away?
Relationships: Elias Bouchard/Peter Lukas (implied), Georgie Barker/Melanie King, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Pre JonMartin - Relationship
Series: The Magnus Archives: Stardew Valley AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2184063
Kudos: 17





	Nobody Told Me It Would Be Lonely

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, long time no sdv/tma fic. I've been planning this fic since I first started this series so I hope y'all like it!!

“Come on! Put your back into it!”

“No, that’s a horrible idea! Don’t listen to her, Martin! Just keep, I dunno, hitting it?”

Martin scoffed at what Georgie and Melanie were calling ‘moral support’, his pickaxe sending harsh vibrations through his arms as it made contact with the large boulder stuck in the ground. The hot afternoon sun beat down on Martin’s back and he made a mental note to pick up some sunscreen next time he was in town. The excessive heat and hard work meant he had to forgo his plaid button up shirt, now tied around his waist, which only left him in a tank top and earned him a few whistles from his captive audience. 

With one final swing, he managed to somehow crack a sizable chunk of the rock off and he deemed it small enough to dig out of the dirt. He sighed in relief as he dropped his pickaxe and walked back to the cabin, flopping onto the front porch next to Georgie and Melanie. “Okay, I think I’m done for the day. Or the week, whichever comes first.”

“I mean you still gotta clear out the leftover debris but hey, congrats,” Georgie said as she handed Martin a bottle of water. “And thanks for selling the rocks to me by the way. I needed the building material and you needed the money so it’s a win-win situation.”

“Yeah, and the farm is really starting to come together, Martin. It doesn’t look like an abandoned junkyard anymore,” Melanie joked.

Martin couldn’t help but roll his eyes but she was right. The last of the trees had been chopped down the week before and that only left him with tilling the dirt and clearing up the rocks and rubble. And only a few days of hard manual labor was enough to break up most of the larger boulders. It gave him enough space in the farm to start planting a few of the seeds he’d gotten from Georgie which had started sprouting the day before. He was honestly surprised at how much he’d been able to accomplish within the first month of living there.

“Yes, I would have to agree with Ms. King here. Though I wouldn’t go so far as to use those exact words to describe the farm’s previous state.” Martin jumped at the sound of a new voice and sat up to see Elias assessing the land, a faint smirk on his lips as he took in Martin’s surprise. 

“Mr. Boucha- I mean, Elias. Sorry, I didn’t notice you were there.” Martin said as he struggled to stand up and put on his shirt. “Um, how are you? Would you like a drink? We have water and… more water.”

Elias huffed out a laugh and held a hand up, “No need, I just came to check up on your progress. And I’d like to commend you on how much you’ve accomplished. I’m sure your Great Uncle Glenn would be proud.”

“Oh! Thank you, Elias.” Martin blushed at the unexpected compliment and looked over the farm. “That’s very kind of you to take the time and come out here just for that.”

“Yes, yes, I always try to take the time to ensure that every business in town is thriving. But that’s not all I’m here for. I noticed you started planting crops and I’d like to offer to buy them.” Elias walked over to the side of the cabin, gesturing for Martin to follow. As Martin walked to the edge of the porch, he looked down to see Elias using a handkerchief to dust off an old wooden crate. “I used to have a similar deal with Glenn back when the farm was still flourishing. He’d place whatever leftover produce he harvested in here and I would come by at the end of the day to collect and leave an appropriate amount of money for his troubles.”

“Right, I think I read something about that in his journal.”

“Is that technically _legal_ , Elias?” Georgie said, standing up to join the conversation.

“Yeah, it sounds too good to be true if you ask me.” Melanie chimed in but not bothered to move from her spot.

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle all the legalities of it. All you’ll have to worry about is the upkeep.” 

Martin couldn’t help the sense of apprehension that sprouted in his chest at Elias’ words but he buried it down in favor of a steady income. “That sounds like a great plan, Elias. Thank you so much!”

“Of course, and I do have one more piece of business while I’m here. My… associate Mr. Peter Lukas wanted to speak with you. He owns the local fishing supplies shop on the beach and he used to know your great uncle as well. He mentioned wanting to ‘show you the ropes’ so I assume he means fishing as he and Glenn used to spend hours out on the sea.”

“Okay, right I think I remember seeing him at the welcome party with...you...” the image of an old sea captain in a deep navy blue raincoat sat across from Elias filled Martin’s head. He blushed at the rumor Tim had let him in on, and judging by the way Elias talked about him now the divorce angle may be true. “I’ll be sure to swing by when I have the chance.”

“Very good. I hate to leave so soon but I have other business to attend to. Have a nice day, Martin. And the same to you Ms. Barker and Ms. King.” With that, Elias turned heel and made for the trail leading into town.

“Ugh, god I thought he’d never leave!” Melanie stood up and draped her arm over Georgie’s shoulders. “I seriously don’t trust him. Like, that ‘deal’ of his sounds super shady.”

“I know, I know. But I mean, I need the money, Melanie. I can’t sustain myself by just selling you guys whatever scraps I find on the farm.”

“He’s right, Mel. He lives on a farm so he has to actually make money by farming. But Martin, I want you to be careful around Peter,” Georgie’s expression was firm as she held Martin’s gaze. “I mean he’s harmless for the most part. But he doesn’t really like company and he can come off as rude when you first meet him.”

“Don’t worry, Georgie. I’ll probably just stop by and say hi. You know, properly introduce myself to my neighbor just like you keep pushing me to do. Besides, I’m sure he can’t be that bad.”

* * *

Martin could’ve sworn it was sunny ten minutes ago. The sand crunched under his boots as he walked to the little wooden shop that sat on the shoreline of the town’s beach. Looking out to the sea, Martin could barely make out anything past 10 meters. The view here must be stunning on a clear day but all he was able to see was the dull blue of the ocean as it faded into an endless void of grey. As a particularly harsh wind blew more of the fog in, he shuddered and picked up his pace as he got closer to the tackle shop.

The bell over the door gave a faint jingle as Martin entered the shop. It was cramped, a few crates of bait sat next to a shelf of fishing lures on the left wall. In the back was a small counter and a rack of different styled fishing poles and nets. Everything from the walls to the shelves and even the products themselves was colored with a palette of muted greys and blues. It somehow felt much colder inside of the shop than out on the beach.

“Um, hello? Mr. Lukas?” Martin called out. There wasn’t much space to hide away in the shop so he was sure he’d heard his call. “P-Peter? Uh, Elias said you wanted to speak with me?”

“You must be Martin.” The hairs on the back of Martin’s neck stood up as a deep voice responded, cutting through the eerie silence and crashing waves.

He whipped around to see Peter sat on a stool in a corner, spooling threads of fishing wire. He looked the same as he did at the party, a plain blue turtleneck tucked into black slacks and tall rubber boots. If it wasn’t for his piercing dull blue eyes and stark white hair Martin wouldn’t have been able to see him against the drab color scheme of the shop.

“Yes. I, uh, I’m Martin Blackwood. Glenn was my great uncle and now I own his farm. Sorry I wasn’t able to introduce myself sooner.” Martin smiled and extended a hand.

Peter only nodded and continued his work. “Your great uncle was a decent man, one of the only people in town I tolerated. I wouldn’t go so far as to call him a friend or even an acquaintance. But he was good, we understood each other.”

Martin stood awkwardly as Peter kept his eyes on the winding fishing line. The distant sound of seagulls droned on in the background, their calls only making the awkward silence even worse. “Um, well I never got to spend much time with him. I only ever met him when I was a kid and I don’t really remember it. But from what I’ve heard he-”

“He didn’t talk as much as you, preferred to keep conversations short. The most he ever spoke was when he talked with his animals. But time claims all and he always ended up on his own, save for Elias and me.” Martin floundered at Peter’s blunt words, unable to think of a decent reply. “But as I said: we understood each other. He had his farm and I have the sea. Sometimes that’s all you need in life, everything and everyone else are just distractions.”

Peter abruptly stood up and Martin had to keep himself from running out of his path. He watched as Peter approached the rack of fishing poles, assessing each one before pulling one off and handing it to Martin. “Here. If you and Glenn are blood then you’ll know how to use this.”

“Th-thank you, Peter. I’ve never really fished before but I’m sure I can pick it up fast, heh.” He gingerly took the fishing pole from Peter’s grip and looked it over. He didn’t know the first thing about fishing… but maybe he could stop by the library and look for some books. And while he’s at the library he could also talk to Jon-

Peter cleared his throat and startled Martin out of his thoughts, his brow raising expectantly as he eyed the door.

“Um, ah, thank you again, Peter. I’ll catch you around?” But the look on Peter’s face told him that he would be doing the exact opposite. Martin took the hint and left as quickly and politely as he could, the bell chiming as the door closed behind him.

As Martin walked up the beach back into town, the fog swirled around him and the words of his great uncle’s letter crept into his mind.

_Please remember to take care of yourself and to appreciate the people around you. I was so focused on my own life that I never had the chance to truly let anyone in._

He shook his head and sighed as the sun peaked out from behind the clouds, revealing the town coming into view. He wouldn’t end up old and alone like his uncle. He already had friends in town that he liked to hang out with and who liked to hang out with him. But as he walked further on the trail to his isolated farm, faint trails of fog still lingered low to the ground and followed.

* * *

Instead of waking up to the bright beams of sunlight filtering through the cracks in his new curtains, Martin awoke to the loud chiming of his phone. He groaned and poked his head out from under the blankets as he blindly felt around for his phone, grumbling a swear when he heard it hit the floor. 

Sitting up, Martin reached down for his phone and surprisingly found it later in the morning than he normally got up. That was weird. He shrugged it off and opened his phone to see a text from Georgie. Right, he almost forgot about the lunch plans they made the day before.

_Georgie Barker: Morning Martin! Sorry to cancel on you but Melanie and I gotta head out of town to visit my family. We’ll be gone the rest of the week but I swear I’ll make it up to you when we get back. Take care! <3_

“Oh.” Martin would be lying if he said the last minute cancellation didn’t hurt. In all honesty he should be used to it, so many of his former coworkers and so called ‘friends’ used to pull out of plans all the time. But since it was Georgie, the closest friend he’s had in a while, it stung even more. At least she texted him hours before their set lunch instead of minutes, or worse not even shown up at all.

Tears pricked on the edges of his vision at the thought but Martin just shook his head and typed out a message telling her it was okay and to have safe travels before flopping back into bed. He was really looking forward to lunch today. Georgie had set it up as a celebration for all the hard work he’d put into the farm. But at least she promised to make up for it with another lunch...next week.

Better than nothing he supposed.

Martin sat back up in bed and decided to get ready for the day. It didn’t matter if his afternoon plans were cancelled, he still had a farm to tend to and nothing was going to stop him. But as got changed, freshened up, grabbed a bite to eat, and opened the front door he found something that actually _might_ stop him.

Instead of his steadily growing crops and vast farmland, Martin was met with a wall of grey. “What the hell?” He muttered under his breath. “It’s spring! Why is it so foggy all of a sudden?”

The thick curtain of mist didn’t respond to his question but instead inched its way further onto his land effectively blocking out even more of his field of vision. “Well this is just _swell_ ,” Martin said as he grabbed his pickaxe and shovel and exited his cabin. “At least I don’t really need to see to dig up rocks. Though it would make things a hell of a lot easier on me.”

Martin sighed and located the rock he abandoned the day before and got to work, getting lost in the motions as the cold plumes of fog swirled around him and his farm.

* * *

After piling up the rest of the rocks and debris in a far corner of the field, Martin beamed. It took nearly a month of working day in and day out but he was finally able to declare the farm completely clean and ready for actual farming. He took a deep breath and picked his head up to assess the land but furrowed his brow when he was met with the same dull grey fog that he’d forgotten about. “Damn,” he whispered disappointedly. “Oh well. Maybe I can take a picture once the weather clears up.”

But the lack of fanfare and real sense of accomplishment due to the weather didn’t put a damper on Martin’s good mood. As he walked up to his cabin and brushed his hands off on his overalls, he decided that he deserved to treat himself. He didn’t need Georgie or Melanie to celebrate, he could just go get lunch for himself. Though he was still trying to save as much money as he could right now. Maybe he could just grab another salad from Gerry’s shop, and maybe even grab a celebratory tart or slice of cake from the saloon.

With a final nod to himself, Martin brushed off as much dirt as he could from his outfit until it seemed presentable and made his way into town.

* * *

The short stroll on the cobblestone path was significantly different from normal because of the fog. The vibrant greens of the trees and grass were dulled, the clear blue sky was now awash in a drab grey, and even the soft tweets of wild birds were absent and replaced by the quiet whooshing of the breeze. 

Martin tried to ignore the eerie atmosphere as he approached the town, but was surprised at the stark lack of people walking around which only added to the feeling. Usually there’d be at least a few people dotted around this time of day; Tim running to Gerry’s shop to grab an ingredient, Basira making her mail rounds, Elias doing...whatever he normally did every day. But right now it just looked like a ghost town.

Swallowing down a sinking feeling of dread, Martin’s eyes searched for any signs of life as he reached the front of the general store and gripped onto the door handle. With a jerking pull, Martin nearly slammed his face into the stationary door. His eyes widened in surprise as he turned his attention to it and gave it a few more experimental pulls but just confirmed that the door was locked.

“What the…?” Martin’s words died on his lips as he saw a sign taped to the inside of the glass door: _Closed On Wednesdays, Sorry for the Inconvenience_

“Oh, huh.” How had he never noticed that until now? He could’ve sworn he’s been by the store on a Wednesday before, but guess he was wrong.

Letting go of the door handle, Martin stared at the hand written sign as if that would supply him with some answer. But after a few moments, the damp fog sent a chill up Martin’s spine and he simply sighed. “I guess I’ll just grab lunch at the saloon.” The thought of having to go in alone without the company of Georgie and Melanie sent a pang of sadness through his chest but he quickly brushed it off. He won’t be alone, Tim will be there. He has to be there since it’s his business. Did he run that place all on his own? He’ll have to ask once he gets there.

The wooden door creaked open and Martin let out a breath of relief as the warmth of the saloon surrounded him in an instant. “Hey, Martin. How’re you, bud?” Tim called out from behind the bar. “Go ahead and grab a seat anywhere, I’ll be with you in a second.”

Martin smiled as he closed the fog and gloom behind him. Looking around, the small saloon was more or less empty, its only occupants being himself, Tim, and Sasha sat up at the bar He waved timidly at the two of them as his smile faltered. Tim wasn’t shy when talking about his feelings for Sasha, though whether she fully reciprocated was still up in the air from Martin’s perspective. They always seemed to be happy with dancing around one another and not going any further. 

So the fact that it was only the two of them there made him feel like he was intruding on something. Martin slowly and quietly slinked into a corner booth as Tim approached him with a menu and a cup of steaming coffee. “Here you go bud, on the house since it’s so cold outside. So Marto, what’ll it be today?”

“Oh, thank you Tim.” Martin’s hands and face warmed as he grabbed the mug. He wasn’t necessarily a huge fan of coffee but he didn’t want to seem rude. “Um just a shepherd's pie for me, please.”

“Alrighty then. One shepherd’s pie coming right up! And feel free to swing by the bar if you wanna chat. But between you and me, I think I’m getting through to Sash so best to give me some time to throw the ole Stoker Charm at her,” Tim stage whispered and winked.

“Heh, no problem Tim,” Martin laughed awkwardly. “I’m honestly a bit tired today so I think I’m just going to get lunch then head back home.”

“Okie dokes, try not to work yourself too hard there, bud. Be back in a second with your food.” Martin felt his smile drop the second Tim turned his back and walked away. He stared bitterly at the rapidly cooling coffee and pushed it away as the sounds of Tim and Sasha’s conversation filtered over to him. 

For some reason, watching Tim and Sasha so easily talk to each other started to leave a bitter taste in his mouth. Here he was trying to enjoy a nice lunch by himself and they just had to rub the fact that they were together in his face. He was suddenly glad that Georgie and Melanie cancelled on him, he didn’t think he’d be able to take them being all cutesy right in front of him. Maybe he should just take his food in a doggy bag and eat it at home where there was no one to bother him.

Wait, what? Martin shook his head and frowned. Why would he think that? He _liked_ his friends and Georgie and Melanie didn’t even act like a touchy feely couple when they were hanging out with him. And Tim and Sasha were just having a normal conversation, nothing more. What was getting into him?

“Here you go, Marto.” The click of a plate being set down in front of Martin startled him and he looked up to see Tim looking at him with concern, “You okay there? You seem sort of… out of it?”

“I-I’m fine, Tim! Don’t worry, guess I got lost in my head there for a second,” Martin lied as his stomach grumbled loudly.

Tim barked out a laugh and brought a hand up to rest on Martin’s shoulder, “Okay then. But if you ever wanna talk or anything, my door’s always open to you. Now eat up before your food gets cold.”

Martin happily obliged and dug in, his food still piping hot but the spot on his shoulder grew cold the second Tim pulled away to go back to Sasha.

* * *

After paying for his food and bidding Tim and Sasha a farewell, Martin stepped back out into the endless sea of grey and sighed. With how nice and warm the saloon was, he nearly forgot about what the weather was like outside. Looking around he was surprised at how much the fog had creeped in. Before he’d still been able to see the whole town with the mist only looming in the background, but now nearly everything was covered. He was lucky to still be able to see a few metres in front of himself. 

Martin unconsciously rubbed his arms, regretting his lack of a jacket, and hesitated at the thought of having to go back home. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to stay out and take a walk, the weather really wasn’t the best for that today. And the idea of hanging out with his friends was out the window since he _just_ person) he saw inside was the one Jonathan Sims, head librarian of the Magnus Memorial Library. The bitter cold from outside dissipated as warmth blossomed in his chest at the sight of him. 

Jon was currently sat behind the check out desk, his hair half up in a tight looking bun and half down, a white button up under a deep brown cardigan, and the same glasses with a golden chain on the tip of his nose as he read a book over them. At the sound of the door opening, Jon looked up and Martin froze.

“U-uh, hi, Jon!” Martin stammered and he approached the desk. “How are...things? Here? At the library?”

“Martin,” Jon nodded as his eyes shifted back to his book, “Things are about as fine as they could be. Though I could live without the fog outside. Have you come to drop off another artefact? I do appreciate the fossil and additional pyrite you gave me last week.”

“Oh, sorry. Nothing today but don’t worry, I’ve been keeping an eye out just in case there’s any more on my farm.” The silence of the library was nearly suffocating and Martin fidgeted with his hands. “I just came by to have a chat, maybe read a book while I’m here.”

“Well this is a library so there’s plenty to read.” Jon gestured to the rows of ancient shelves with a finality that made it seem as if the conversation were over.

“Heh, yeah. I’ll just...go do that now.” Martin said dejectedly as he walked off to browse the library’s collection. He didn’t really pay attention to where he was going, more occupied with how cold Jon’s tone had been. It probably wasn’t their fault, Tim had mentioned multiple times how hard it was for them to get comfortable with someone new and Martin was no exception. 

After a fair bit of wandering and glancing at a few familiar titles, Martin found himself in the back section of the library in front of a shelf that looked even more decrepit and archaic than the ones surrounding it. The books lined on the shelves looked well worn and read through hundreds of times. Martin tilted his head to read the titles on the spine: _A Journal of a Plague Year, Book of the Dead, Dictionnaire Infernal, Ex Altiora, Key of Solomon, The Tale of a Field Hospital_ Some of the titles he recognized from his own time working at a number of libraries but most of them went over his head.

Without thinking, Martin grabbed a book at random _A Guest For Mr. Spider_ and flipped through it. It looked like an average children’s book about a fat spider, though judging by the contents it was obvious that it wasn’t meant for kids. Honestly it’s stuff like this that gives spiders a bad name. 

“You might want to be careful with that one.” Martin choked down a scream as Jon appeared out of nowhere. “Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. But I’m serious about that book, scarred me for life when I found it as a kid. I can’t even look at a spider anymore without feeling millions of tiny legs on my skin.” They brought their arms around each other and suppressed a shudder.

“You don’t like spiders? But they’re basically harmless.” Martin started laughing before he could stop himself. “Like all they want to do is eat all the pesky flies and other gross bugs around the place. And as long as you leave them alone they’ll leave you alone.”

“Try telling that to Mr. Spider,” Jon said bitterly as they eyed the book still in Martin’s hands. 

His eyes followed their gaze and he started to slip through the book again, trying to ignore the rather gorey content, until he landed on the inside cover. _From the Library of_ “Jurgen Leitner? Who’s that?”

“Ugh, if I never hear that name again it’ll be too soon,” Jon said as he took the book from Martin’s hands and reshelved it, giving it a wary glance as he looked back to the man in front of him. “He was an associate of my former predecessor. This is a section from his personal collection. All the books are rather, as Tim puts it, spooky and have some connection or other to odd occurrences.”

“Like what?”

“Well, the book you looked through was one I donated. I read it as a kid and it- um, it may have led to the disappearance of someone I knew as a child.”

“Jon, I’m so sorry.”

“Eh, don’t be. He was honestly a bit of a dick, used to bully me all the time for being a smartass little kid but I don’t blame him. Though, that doesn’t mean he got what he deserved.” Jon’s eyes grew dark as he pointedly looked away from the bookshelf.

Sensing their distress, Martin carefully guided them away from the shelf and changed the subject, “I’ll be sure to steer clear of Leitner’s collection from now on, then. So do you have any recommendations? I used to work at a library myself so I’m open to anything really.”

“Well, if you’re still interested in children’s books we have a number of books by Diana Wynne Jones.” Martin could see the barest hint of a smirk on Jon’s lips and it felt as if he were looking at the sun itself. 

“I honestly prefer Neil Gaiman myself,” Martin replied with a smirk of his own.

That got a laugh out of Jon and soon they found themselves in a deep conversation about their different tastes in books. Martin was well versed in poetry and was a sucker for romance novels. Jon pretended to scoff, more at the mention of Keats being his favorite than his mention of romance novels. Jon had apparently consumed any and all kinds of printed media as a kid but nowadays preferred nonfiction over anything. Currently he was invested in a book on the history of animal domestication and Martin got lost in their enthusiastic gestures and rambling.

Time passed as the two got to know more about one another, scooting closer and closer to each other at the table they sat at, and before they knew it, it was nearly time for Jon to close it. Reluctantly, Martin stood up and waved goodbye.

“Wait, Martin!” Jon called out, blushing once they realized that they didn’t mean to shout. “Um, since you weren’t able to pick out a book today, maybe you could come back tomorrow and I could help you pick one out. If you aren’t too busy that is.”

Martin felt a smile spread across his face and he nodded, “Yeah, I didn’t have much planned for tomorrow so I’ll be back.”

“Good. I’m looking forward to it. Have a safe trip home, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Jon smiled back as he escorted Martin to the door.

“Yeah, see you tomorrow.” Martin watched as Jon slowly disappeared behind the closing door, the warmth of their smile now a permanent fixture in his mind. And the sun peeking out from the receding fog helped to solidify the warmth that took residence in his heart alongside his sprouting feelings.

**Author's Note:**

> wow this ended up way longer than I expected lmaoo  
> but it was really fun to write and I'm absolutely setting up for future JonMartin  
> I have a few other ideas so look forward to those!!!


End file.
